A top military leader in Belarus has been reported to have submitted his resignation in connection to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine that was recently launched by Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Leaders in Belarus are allied with Putin, and Russian forces have used Belarusian territory as a staging area for attacks on Ukraine. The official in question is Major General Viktor Gulevich, a deputy defense minister in Belarus and the head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Belarus, and The Daily Mail notes that Gulevich — per reported information, at least — “claimed he cannot support the current Russian invasion of Ukraine.” Gulevich tied this claimed stance to the logistical challenges associated with Belarusian participation in the conflict — he “argued that Belarusian military unit personnel refused to take part in hostilities and that the Armed Forces of Belarus could not complete a single battalion group,” according to that outlet’s reporting.
⚡️TikTok limits service in Russia over new censorship law.
TikTok suspended livestreaming and new content in Russia following the adoption of a new law that introduces jail terms of up to 15 years for "spreading misinformation" about the actions of the Russian armed forces.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 6, 2022
In a statement addressed to Belarus’s defense minister that’s been attributed to Gulevich, he added that “conducting explanatory work with the commanders of military units did not yield results. I have the courage to assume that the replacement of the commanders of these military units, who could not organize the formation of groups on the ground, will not give us the result we need… In view of the above, I ask for your decision regarding the acceptance of my resignation.”
Vadym Denysenko, advisor to interior minister of Ukraine:
"Russian occupiers gathered sufficient troops near Kyiv and will try to seize the capital in the next few days."
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 6, 2022
Although there could obviously be no truth to their insinuations considering the reliance on propaganda that prevails in Putin’s circles, the Belarusian Defense Ministry claimed that the country’s military formations are fully staffed and cast doubt on the legitimacy of Gulevich’s reported resignation, saying that it would need to be submitted to the Belarusian leader, Putin ally Alexander Lukashenko. Oleksiy Arestovych, a Ukrainian presidential adviser, indicated that he was looking into information regarding Gulevich’s reported resignation. Arestovych added, as of recently, that “the Belarusian army at the level of formations does not take part in the armed aggression against Ukraine… Nevertheless, the territory of Belarus is used, to put it mildly, to the fullest – troops come from there, the entire system of military airfields is used to bombard Ukraine, and anti-tactical missiles are launched.” Sources including the Kyiv Post picked up the Gulevich resignation story, and Ukrainian journalist Andrei Tsaplienko has also gotten behind it.
The head of the General Staff of Belarus, Gulevych resigned. He reported that he hadn't been able to organize any battalion tactical group. Belarus people don't want to fight against #Ukrainians. pic.twitter.com/O58QhgCtO1
— KyivPost (@KyivPost) March 6, 2022
